Adjustable earphone



1949. R. E. DULINSKY ADJUSTABLE EARPHONE Filed June 2, 1945 INVENTOR.

- ATTORNE Y R. E. Dali/75 BY Patented Oct. 25, 1949 i'iUNI'TESD OFFICE ADJUSTABLE EARPHONE -Ross EglDulinskyfsa-n Fnamcisco,.'.0alif.

, Application June: 2,

I'GIaim. 1

'.'This invention relates? toimprovements'. in; ear phone securing-means. and has particular reference'to a mechanism associated with the head rest or clampiof-vthe yphones,whereby the ear phones may be readily adjusted to a variety of "positions relative to the ears to assure" the'maximum degree of comfort to the user of the phones.

A furthereobject :of the finventiorrzis the provision of an adjustable headrest to compensate fofidifi'erences in sizes oftheheads of the-users.

. Another-objectof' the-invention is thetproduction "of' a" clamp *of the character described that is 'simple in construction, economical'to"-manufacture; readily adjustable-positive in" operation, strong and durable; and'highly'efiicient in use.

Other objectsand advantages will be apparent during .the course of the following description:

.Inlthe accompanying -drawing wherein like" numerals "are employed "to "designate like "parts throughout the same,

Fig. 1 is a front elevation of the device constructed in accordance with my invention, disclosing the ear phones in an adjusted position relative to the head clamp,

Fig. 2 is a side elevation of the same,

Fig. 3 is a top plan view of a fragmentary section of the head clamp and disclosing the means for adjusting the ear phones, in this instance the ear phone and spindle are detached,

Fig. 4 is a transverse vertical section of the retaining mechanism, the view being taken on the line 4-4 of Fig. 3 and looking in the direction of the arrows,

Fig. 5 is a modified form of the clamp that is employed when a single ear phone is used, and

Fig. 6 is a further modified form of the clamp or head rest disclosing a sectional head rest that is employed to compensate for variations in the size of the head of the user.

It is a well known fact that in the use of ear phones pressure of the phones on the ears is not only annoying and uncomfortable, but tends to produce deafness when the reception sounds are of considerable volume, and especially is this true when the phones snugly or intimately contact the ears. To overcome this inconvenience, I have devised the present invention, wherein by virtue of the construction employed a positioning of the phones in close proximity to the ears or remote therefrom can be easily controlled or manipulated by the operator, thus assuring the maximum degree of comfort without detracting from the accuracy and clearness of reception.

Referring to the drawing the numeral 1 indicates spaced wires that are curved to conform 1945,.TSerialNo..'597;297

-2 I to the 'shape'of'the top of the head. "These wires are looped at their lower ends'as'at '8' about" an "extension-9' that is' secured-to curved plates I adapted to snugly engage the sides of' the head direc'tly above the ears of the :user. This construction of' the preferred type of clamp is illushated to advantage in Fig. 1*of" the drawing.

"A -pair of ear phones is indicated" by the'nu- "-meral 1 I I eac'h of-which 'has'pivotally connected in "thereto'as at I2 a spindle l3.

The mechanismfor" adjusting 'my invention'to "bring' the-ear phones into close 'proximity'or to remotely-position'the'same-relative to the-ears "of the listener, isillustrated to'advantageimFigs.

:enecharrism vis employed on each "side of the head ;:c1amp;. but .-one: construction" .will: be :described.

"The; numeral i 4; indicates as 1az whole arhousing .that."-inclu'des-.1a.rearwalll5, ;a bottom "wall 46 havinga. concave. seat I 'l provided therein, 7 side walls I8 and IS, an apertured front wall 20, the housing being open at its top as at 2 I. It will be noted that said housing is internally threaded adjacent its top position to threadedly receive the external threads of a cap or adjusting nut 2|. As disclosed to advantage in Fig. 4, it will be observed that the housing is rigidly supported as at 22 by the plate 10. A metal ball 23 is positioned in said metallic housing and is normally so free to rotate therein, but can readily be retained in a fixed position by the actuation of the cap 2| and by the contact of the latter with the ball. A concave thin pliable spring plate 24 rests in the seat I! of the bottom wall and supports thereon the ball 23. By virtue of this construction the plate adjusts tension on the ball, and being inter posed between the ball and the base of the housing eliminates any binding action between these parts.

To provide a connection between the spindle that carries the ear phones and the mechanism that permits the adjustment of such phone, I have provided a collar 25 that receives in. its bore 26 the upper end of the spindle 53. An inner flat wall 21 of the collar is equipped with a slot 23 that receives therein an extension or shank 29 carried by the ball. A flat narrow spring member 38, that is connected to said collar and is interposed between the fiat wall Zland a shoulder provided on shank, extends upwardly from said collar and is shaped and curved to make contact with the spindle. Due to the binding action of the spring on the spindle, accidental displacement of the spindle relative to the collar will be at eliminated.

In Fig. l, I have illustrated the position of the phones when they directly contact the ears, and wherein the spindle is shown as angularly positioned relative to the housing. Should the listener desire to position the phones remote from the ears, it will be only necessary to adjust the cap upwardly and the free movement of the ball in the housing will permit the spindle to assume the position of lying in a vertical plane, and relief can be obtained from the rasping or loud noises emanating from the phones. A tightening of the cap in the housing and contact of the cap with the ball will assure a retention of the ear phones in the desired adjusted position.

In some instances the use of only one ear phone is desired, and I have accordingly illustrated in Fig. 5 a type of head clamp that is employed. The portion A of the clamp is similar to that disclosed in Fig. l, and functions to receive the mechanism for adjusting a single phone. The opposite end B of the clamp, however, is slightly altered to provide an auxiliary bar 3|, that cooperates with the remainder of the head clamp to provide a snug fit of the clamp on the head.

To compensate for differences in sizes and.

curvatures of the heads of the users, a sectional clamp has been illustrated in Fig. 6, and comprises wire sections 32 and 33 that are spaced and curved and are detachably secured one to the other by a cross-bar 34 that overlies the crown of the head. A pair of adjusting nuts 35 function to retain the free ends of the sections 32 and 33 in the desired adjusted position.

It is to be understood that the forms of my invention herewith shown and described are to be taken as the preferred examples of the same, and that changes relative to the shape, size, material and arrangement of parts may be readily resorted to without departing from the spirit of the invention or the scope of the subjoined claim.

Having thus described my invention, I claim:

In combination with a head clamp, of means for adjustably positioning an ear phone relative to the ear of the user, said means comprising a casing equipped with an open upper end, a concave base, and an apertured front wall, a ball housed in said casing, an extension carried by said ball and having a shoulder formed thereon, a concave pliable plate positioned on the base of said casing for receiving thereon said ball, a cap threadedly secured in the open end of said casing and capable of retaining said ball in a fixed adjusted position within said casing, a collar having a fiat .side wall, said collar being supported by the extension of said ball exteriorly of the apertured front wall of said casing, a spindle for the ear phone receivable in the collar and detachably secured thereto, and a spring member extending upwardly relative to said collar and in frictional contact with said ear phone spindle, said spring member being interposed between the flat wall of said collar and the shoulder of the ball extension.

ROSS E. DULINSKY.

REFERENCES CITED The following references file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS are of record in the 

